ACCEPTANCE
by fiza tiza
Summary: Artemis is among those persons who doesn't trust so easily. Oliver is offended at Roy and doesn't want to deal with a new sidekick. Wally doesn't want some newbie archer to replace Roy. Roy is just plain irritated. first story. English is not my native language. constructive criticism will be appreciated.
1. Chapter 1

ACCEPTANCE

Oliver queen was officially having a bad day. First, Dinah had to have a fight with him about Roy. Then, Roy had to walk out of his place with all his belongings. _Going solo huh, _Oliver thought_, that idiot is gonna get himself killed_ and now Bruce Wayne aka Batman had to call him at fucking 4:30 in the morning_. I mean seriously does this guy ever sleep_, Oliver thought begrudgingly as he entered the zeta tube to go to bat cave.

_"You are late" _bats called in mechanical voice.

_"Only fifteen minutes, come on bats, even my high school teachers were less strict than you besides what's up. To be honest, today, I am not in a mood of having late night love chats with you anyway" _Oliver said.

Batman didn't answer him. Instead he turned towards his holographic computer and brought up the picture of a young girl about 15 years of age. The girl possesses Asian features with the stormy gray eyes giving her face a sharp appearance. The most striking feature of the girl was her long blond hair in high pony tail. The girl looks combustible and volatile that much he knew just by looking at her.

"_Artemis crook, age15 years, daughter of sports master and huntress, excellent in archery and fairly good in hand to hand combat, trained from the age of six by sports master and Lady Shiva, currently living with her ex-con paraplegic mother in downtown of Gotham_" Batman explained.

"_And you are telling me this because…._" Arrow asked somewhat impatiently. He didn't understand where bat was going with it.

"_The girl has been doing the hero work for a while now. Had quite a repute in downtown. She is also the same girl who saved kid flash live in the last mission. I want you to mentor her. The girl is perfect for the team. The team could use an archer in their rank."_ Bruce said in one breath.

Oliver was too shocked to comprehend this. "_You want me to do what_" he nearly shouted at the batman.

"_Mentor the girl. The team needs an archer. The girl is quite right for the job. Since, Roy has clearly refused our offer I don't see any harm in it_" Batman explained, _"Besides the girl is trained by shadows we could use that to our advantage."_

Even thinking about having a new protégé is making him sick right now. Oliver could sense the upcoming headache. He sighed and said, "_So let me get this straight, there is this girl who is not only trained by shadows but also is the daughter of the well-known hired murderer in the Gotham and you not only want me to mentor her but you are also thinking about putting her on the team. Isn't it a bit cliché for you as the most paranoid man that has ever walked on Earth."_

_"Her family relations are irrelevant"_ Bruce said sternly. "_I trust her. She has been unwillingly following her father's footstep for the last two years. But she is a good person I can vouch for that. She has provided me with some valuable information during her time with the shadows and now has openly defied the shadows by putting on the hero costume."_

"_Still if you trust her that much why don't you teach her? She is from Gotham after all._" Oliver said repulsively.

"_Her specialty is archery, making you the most appropriate person to teach her." _Bruce said emphasizing on every word.

"_Really bats after seeing how well I mentored Roy, you still want me to mentor someone else. You know what I am done with all this sidekick business. I literally can't put up with the teenager's crap anymore_." Oliver replied harshly.

"_Roy made his own choices, you cannot blame yourself for that_" Bruce said, _"you are a good person Olive, she could learn a lot from you. The girl clearly has some trust issues and your easy going nature can help her overcome those. You will be a positive influence on her"_

_"Come on, so you want me to keep her on the straight path. If that is what you need why don't send her to rehab" _Oliver said frustratingly_. _Bruce tried to intimidate him with his glare but Oliver held his gaze.

_"Fine, If you don't feel like tutoring her that is okay, Black Canary will take care of that, I only need you to act as her uncle as an excuse for her induction to the team. If you want to keep your civilian life isolated that is your choice too. But don't despise her on behalf of Roy. Give her a chance."_

"_There is no getting away from you bats, isn't it_?" Oliver thought,_ leave the bats to beat you up with the logical arguments._

"_Fine I will do it but don't expect me to treat her as my niece"_ Oliver said while rubbing his eyes, _"and if you don't mind I would like to have a little sleep before I officially fly to Gotham and came to your office tomorrow as the CEO of Queen industries. Why do you have to be so stubborn Bruce, you could have just inaugurated the orphanage yourself and saved me the trouble"._

_"Queen's and Wayne industries collaboration is beneficial for both of _us. _ Besides you are getting the award of best humanitarian , I think that is more than a good reason to be in Gotham_" Bruce said.

To say Artemis crook was agitated would be an understatement. She had to miss her bus today. There had to be a rush here today since some billionaire was coming downtown for inauguration of an orphanage. The police had to stop all the bystanders and she had to have stuck among them.

She was getting late for school and she had a history test due today. _Sir. Somerfield is going to kill her_, she thought.

Across the road, she could see a blond man wearing black suit giving some impressive speech about his work and by the look on the faces of audience, they were totally enjoying it. Why the media and so many people have gathered here was beyond her. To her it was a waste of time. Not that she was against the social work; she just hated the fact that people uses the disguise of social work to get fame and attention.

She looked around for a way out but couldn't find any. So, she decided to take the aerial route. She found the nearest building, climbed over the wall and then to roof. She hardly should have reached the third roof when two men standing above the rooftop got her attention. _Huh looks like I am not the only one with the liking of an aerial route_, she thought_. _

Artemis instantly recognized one of them, it was Ethan. Artemis used to know him. He was one of the apprentices of lady Shiva and also has been the right hand of her father time to time. That meant the Triaid is onto something. Before Artemis could make any other hypothesis, Ethan brought out the sniper gun from his bag pack and starts adjusting it on the slope of the roof top while the second man ran across the other rooftop and brought out his own gun.

Artemis instantly recognized what was happening and started running towards the closest assassin who happens to be Ethan. She covered her face with her scarf. She didn't have her bow but she did have her cross bow. She took it out and aimed towards the second sniper across the roof and let the electroding arrow fly towards him. Ethan shot towards the person he was aiming for. Artemis prayed that he missed the shot. Without waiting for the arrow to hit its mark, she successively let two exploding arrow fly towards the Ethan's roof to get the attention of the assassin.

"_I am very glad that my dear friend Bruce Wayne provided me this excellent opportunity to be of some help again_" Oliver said during his speech in the ceremony. _"To be honest I don't think I deserve this award"_

_Show off_, Bruce thought while smirking. Out of the corner of his eye, Bruce detected some movement on the roof.

_"You deserve…"_ Oliver's speech was cut off by the sound of a gunshot and by brutal tackle from the Bruce. While lying sprawled on the stage, he quickly saw a man standing over the roof with a sniper gun in his hands. The assassin quickly adjusted his gun again and was once more aiming towards him. He was cut off by the two arrows embedding near him and exploding on impact. For some time, all Oliver could saw was smoke but when it get a little clear, he could easily make out an outline of a teenager fighting against the assassin. He looks towards the Bruce to decide the possible course of action but was disappointing to find that he was nowhere to be found. _I hate it when he does that_, Oliver thought.

Artemis was having a hard time keeping up with the assassin. He was fast, she would give him that. She tried to end the fight by sweeping his legs out of him but he jumped at the exact time and brought down the barrel of his gun hard on her leg. Before Artemis could recover, he spun his gun and aimed it towards her head. Artemis had to back flip to dodge the bullet to her head which provided assassin the distance and time to aim again. He used the advantage and shot the girl, the bullet embedded itself in her shoulder making her go stumbling down the steep roof. Artemis breath was knocked out of her and her vision was getting blurry with each passing second. _Shit! I am screwed. That freaking billionaire owes me_, Artemis thought. The last thing she saw was the assassin aiming his gun towards her before passing out.

Oliver saw the girl getting shot. Before the assassin could end the teen, batman appeared behind him and threw him off his shoulder, ending the fight in three to five well directed punches. Oliver released the breath he was holding and waited for the scene to unfold itself. Bats quickly tied the assassin and took off with the unconscious girl. The moment later his bodyguards rushed him towards his bullet proof car and advised him to get out of here to which he gladly agreed. "So much for having the security more than a president" Oliver thought on his way to Bruce Wayne.

Not even in the slightest Oliver would have thought that his first meeting with his new protégé will be in the medical unit of the bat cave. When he arrived at the bat cave, Bruce asked for his help right away. They removed her tank top. Bats started working on pulling out the bullet from her shoulder while he readied the bandages to stop the flow of blood. The wound was quite nasty as she has been shot from very close distance. The moment bat pulled out the bullet he wrapped her shoulder in a tight gauze. The flow of blood stopped but still the girl's breathing was not even. Bruce picked the injection from the nearby table and took the blood sample of the unconscious teen and started working on computer again.

"_Why isn't her breathing rate becoming normal_?" Oliver asked concernedly to batman. Before he could reply, the girl started convulsing. Oliver had to use all his strength to keep the girl static.

After doing something on computer, he ran towards the cabinet and bought out some injection.

"_The bullet was laced with poison"_, he explained while administrating the injection.

After one or two minutes, the girl's breathing became normal and both Bruce and Oliver released the breath of relief. After making sure that the girl is okay and there could be no possible threat to her life, Bruce left to deal with the media leaving him alone with the unconscious girl.

While sitting near the teen, he first time actually observed the teen. The girl was looking like an angel with all her hair spread out on the operating table. Her facial features seem relaxed which suddenly provided him some strange comfort. He was just relishing that odd comfort when her left arm caught his attention. There was a scar in the shape of shadows insignia carved into her upper arm probably with the knife. Oliver began to closely inspect the girl and found many scars, burn marks and welt marks covering her back. _Scars do look old that is a relief_, Oliver thought.

Oliver sighed and again settled on the nearby chair. Looks like she didn't have the best of childhood. The girl is already been through hell really doesn't need the attitude from him. Oliver thought and decided to give this girl a chance. Looks like I have a new sidekick. He grunted and rubbed his hands over his face hoping that this better not be a mistake.


	2. Chapter 2

**Some of you might find Artemis school friends introduction unnecessary but it's in there for purpose. If you do like story please review. Suggestions and criticism are always welcomed. Author note.**

STAR CITY

OLIVER'S HOUSE

The moment Oliver entered his house; he was trapped in quite a tight hug. "_Thank god you are alright_", Dinah said while embracing him, "_Oliver queen you are not allowed to scare me like that"._

_At least she is not mad at me anymore, _Oliver thought happily_. "If I am getting hugs from you after getting shot every time I am doing that again"._

Dinah playfully narrowed her eyes and gave him a peck on his cheek. Oliver's face resembled of a child who just got his favorite lollypop.

_"I heard some girl got shot and apparently Bruce kidnapped her afterwards. Is she okay"_, Dinah couldn't help but to be concerned.

_"Not some girl, the girl got shot"_, Oliver said while making his way over to the couch.

_"Care to elaborate", _Dinah asked curiously and sat down along with him on the couch. Her hands automatically find their way to his chest. Oliver smiled and positioned himself so that she could lay her head on his shoulder.

_"Last night, Bruce asked me to take some girl named Artemis as my new protégé, as far as I am told she is pretty good in archery and bat thinks she is also ready to join the team's rank, we were supposed to meet her mom this weekend but looks like the girl found us before that. She is the one who got shot today. Saved my life I guess. She is also the same girl who saved flash's kid life on last mission._" Oliver told Dinah who besides listening to him was also playing with his goatee now.

_"Hmmm you don't seem too enthusiastic about it, what's bugging you?", _Dinah said knowing too well that there is something more to it that Oliver wants to tell her,_ "and its Kid flash not flash's Kid"_

_"Dinah I am not so sure about this"_. Oliver sighed and Dinah chooses to remain silent, giving him time to put his thoughts into words, _"With everything that happened recently, I am not sure that I want that kind of commitment again. I mean look where me and Roy are standing right now. He doesn't even want to stay here. Thinks I lied to him. God damn it, it's not my fault that bat didn't allowed him in HQ. I always treated him like a son. Always did what I thought was best for him. Always think of him as my partner. He was everything to me and he just walks out on me like I meant nothing to him"_

Dinah stopped his ranting by putting a finger on his lips, "_Ollie, he was just angry, he didn't meant a word he said. You know how hot headed he is" _Dinah tried to comfort him but Oliver shrugged it off, _"Let him blew some steam off on his own. He will be back before you know it"_, Dinah reassured him.

Oliver sighed and decided to give this matter a rest knowing that nothing better could come out of this discussion, "_Yeah, whatever, it's not like I am dying to see him or anything. He could do whatever he wants"._

"_Ollie, stop it. You wouldn't be discussing him if you aren't missing him. There is nothing to be ashamed of if you admit you care about him. Besides, some women would find there boyfriend's caring about their ward very interesting"_, Dinah told him playfully, "_and it's not nice to keep your girlfriend waiting while telling her about someone especially if it is about girl" _

Oliver smiled lightly turning his full attention to the beautiful women practically sitting over his lap._ "Are you jealous?" _Oliver gave a fake expression of curiosity to Dinah, just to enjoy her reaction.

_"You should be careful about antagonizing the girl who controls your sex life, Mr. Oliver queen",_ Dinah threatens, "_Now if you want to sleep alone tonight you can try to irritate me but if you don't, tell me about the girl this instant"_

Oliver laughed and wraps his arms around her, "_what would I do without you?"_,

"_Simple, you would die in misery, self-ashamed_" Dinah said like she was stating a fact. Oliver slightly smiled. He took a moment to relish the closeness of their bodies and starts telling her about Artemis.

GOTHAM CITY

GOTHAM NORTH HIGH SCHOOL

_"Hey Artemis",_ the red head girl, Victoria, shouted and wrapped me into a tight hug giving a harsh jerk to my bad shoulder. I internally screamed and thousands of curses cross my mind but didn't voice it_. It's actually kind of nice to know that you were missed by someone._

_"Where were you yesterday? You totally left us hanging. Not to mention, we had test yesterday in which you didn't even bother to show up",_ tan girl with Chinese features asked from behind_. Leave it to Marry to teach me the importance of education and how necessary it is for your successful future blah blah blah_

_"Sorry guys I wasn't feeling well"_ I tried to make an excuse for my absence yesterday, _"and don't worry about the test Marry, my mom have talked to Sir. Somerfield. He is going to go easy on me for leaving this test."_ I mean you could call getting shot, waking up on your bed with your hysterical mom screaming over you (thank God she didn't suspect it to be a bullet wound) and having no idea how you got there, not feeling well. But I have a gut feeling that was batman because firstly, there were painkillers and extra bandages lying on the table right beside my bed and secondly, I was not in jail (in case of police) or a torture cell ( in case it was my dad saving my sorry ass and deciding to punish me for being getting shot). But all in all it was a good day, nobody died. I later found it that the land on which they were making an orphanage was used as a base for the triads and it was my dad's idea to ruin the show by putting a bullet in the billionaire's head, So that no one thinks of buying this land again. The idea of accidently destroying my father's plan gave me a pure delight. I was so happy that I was out of my bed in no time. I was brought back into reality by the giggles of Vicky. I tried to push off the last evening events at the back of my mind and settled on enjoying their company.

_"Girl! You totally missed out Vicky and Eddy makes out session yesterday" _Marry told me while we all were heading towards our class. Instantly, Vicky screamed. Vicky's shriek could be heard in all over Gotham. I am sure that upon listening to her scream batman would have thought that someone was getting raped and might already been searching for victim. _"It was an accident"_, Vicky clarified. Right on cue, Eddy popped out of the room we were about to enter, leaning casually against the room's door. _"You wound me, sugar. I was having the time of my life with you on top of me"_, Eddy said taking delight in torturing Vicky.

Now I was extremely curious. We all settled down on our chairs. "_Guys spill it. What happened?" _I asked impatiently.

_"Nothing much A, Vicky ran into Eddy in hurry of getting to class, resulting in an awkward situation which contains Vicky on top of Eddy, me and marry laughing their heads off, librarian and half of school thinking that they were having sex in portion containing translations of bible and other holly books. See no big",_ someone sitting behind answered it for me. I turned around to see Sam sitting over there. Sam was tall, muscular and most probably the most handsome boy in the Gotham North who has recently joined the Gotham North again. I was still getting used to an idea of seeing him there.

_"Sam",_ I must have been zoned out upon seeing him and please don't blame it on me. Any sane girl would have zoned out on seeing his abs. Mind you I don't like him or neither is he my crush. It's just that I couldn't help but admire hot guys. He must have sensed it because he was giving me a smile that could rival joker.

_"Like what you see",_ Sam approached me with the mischievous smile which was quickly replaced by the real one when he hugged me. Once again I was reminded of my bad shoulder.

"_Not a bit. You on steroid or something"_, I asked, praying that he didn't notice my nervousness.

"_Not on steroids I am on drugs"_, he answered plainly. My eyes must have been popped out of my eye socket because he quickly clarified. "_Kidding A, just Kidding"_.

Before I could interrogate him anymore, our teacher walked in the room. We took our seats and the same old routine starts. With marry trying to listen to everything very attentively, Eddy winking and passing on notes to every bitch into the class. Me and Vicky enjoying the show. To my surprise, Sam also starts making fun of teacher with Eddy. I couldn't help but admire my friends.

How did I ended up in this group of outclass I have no idea but it's probably because I was an outclass myself. I am not the person who is known to have so many friends. My dad makes sure of that. Here with these idiots I always felt at home. It's again because we share some common problems and traits. Victoria, the most hyperactive girl in the Gotham North, probably owns the mill of perkiness. Even in the mornings she is so perked up that sometime I have to resist the urge of snapping her neck. _I mean who could wake you up at 6 o'clock in the morning on fucking Saturday just to tell you that she has got the bracelet and it is in matching with the dress she is gonna wear on Monday, of course Vicky._ But that is the thing about her, besides living in an orphanage she still enjoys very little thing in her life, makes me wanna hug her but I can't, _you had to keep appearances right_. Marry, the nerd, whose main goal is to study and make sure that all of her group fellows are studying too. You can't blame it on her too. Her family is mostly facing financial crisis and she frequently rant about that how her parents have been fighting again over some bill. So, studying harder and getting a good job is her aim.

Edward, mostly known in girls as Eddy, the flirt is the most non serious person I have ever met. I mean he is probably worse than Cameron. He is the joker of the class but also likes Victoria from the core of his heart. Victoria is mostly oblivious of that and he is too stubborn to admit it. Sam used to be my neighbor. We have been friends for a long time. When his father was murdered, he moved out of Gotham. He recently returned back to Gotham and became good friends with eddy becoming a permanent member of misfits. My train of thought was broken by the loud clang of the bell. Everyone rushed out; eager to get out of the hellhole we called school.

Since me and Sam's houses are very close, he started walking with me. Along the way I can't help but feel that someone is watching me. I turned around but couldn't find anything suspicious. This creepy feeling washed over me like waves and I felt every part of my body telling me to watch out. I decided to catch the culprit. I made excuse of forgetting my books in school to Sam and ditched him. I ran to the nearest alley and climbed over the trash box, used it as a medium to jump to get to the roof. Being the long range shooter, I always prefer the high vintage point. After that I waited for the culprit to reveal himself. After 5 minutes of agonizing wait, nothing happened. I decided that it must be the pain killers that are messing with my head. I was just about to get down of the roof when I heard the faint footsteps behind me

"_Hello! Baby girl_", the husky voice asked from behind me, chilling me to the core in an instant_. Dad, I mentally sighed, so not good_. I swiftly turned around only to saw his fist coming right toward my face. I tried to dodge but wasn't fast enough. His fist made contact with my nose and pain exploded in my face. I lost my footing and was sent trembling down the roof. _Twice in two days. Man this is getting old seriously._ The next thing I know I landed on the big trash box over my injured shoulder. A silent scream left my lips as I cuddled my injured shoulder closer to my chest. The overwhelming blackness threatens to overtake me but I refused to lose by my dad again without putting up a fight. My dad landed right behind me with a soft thud. I know where this was going and mentally prepared myself for the worst.

_"Miss me",_ he teased. I clenched my shoulder a little harder, bravely met his eyes and glared him, refusing to answer him. He might have taken it as a sign of disrespect because in a moment he was on to me. His foot forcefully met my injured shoulder and a cry escaped from my lips. I thought he might be satisfied now but how wrong was I. I tried to get up only to be rewarded with a kick to stomach. My father than yanked me up by grabbing my neck pushing a little harder than required making me wince in pain. "_Ouch! That look like it hurts_", he said referring towards my shoulder.

"_What do you want Dad?", _I asked getting straight to the point with a weak voice struggling to breath.

_"Why did you save the billionaire?"_ he asked angrily, easily lifting me up from my feet, _"who told you about the triaid plan_?". Thousands of answers crossed my mind_. Because I fucking hate you, I want to be a hero. You are dumb it was just luck that I was there. I didn't know of your plan etc._ But one thing I learnt the hard way is if there is anything that could really piss him off is to not to get any response or get a sarcastic one and _Man I am only alive to piss him off, it's my destiny_. I settled on giving him the smirk as an answer. Just to add fuel in the fire, I gathered all my strength and knee him hard on the face. His hold on me slacked and I used this opportunity to send flying kick to his head.

Just when I thought I got him he grabbed my ankle and using my momentum, sent me flying to the wall. My head slammed against the wall and black dots invaded my vision just for some seconds. I ignored the sharp pain in my head and settled on making fun of him. _"Oh dad you know I was just trying to be on your good side again"_, I sarcastically provided an answer to the previous question when I saw him approaching me again.

He easily lifted me up again and smiled, Chills run down my spine and I knew that was not good. I could feel his hot breath on my face when he started taunting me, _"So you haven't got tired of playing hero, I see….now what could I do about it"_ he said while giving a fake gesture like he was actually thinking. I didn't even get a chance to blink when with one swift move, he dislocated my injured shoulder. I desperately screamed but he wasn't done with me yet. I tried to get out of his grasp but it was too strong. He punched me hard on my stomach with such force that I could feel the blood into my mouth. I could feel my vision getting blurry. Then a series of punches directed at my rib cage jolted me awake. I stinging pain exploded in my rib cage.

_"You think that you could get away with it. If you didn't tell me how did you know about the attack? I will first beat you to death. Then we will both pay a visit to a pathetic women you call mother. I will kill her in front of you and then if you still wouldn't tell me I will feed you to the dogs. What do you say?"_ he asked with hate emphasizing every word. I was scared out of my mind with a threat to my mother. It doesn't matter to me what he do to me but my mother was off limits. I only got her back. _"You wouldn't dare"_,I asked trying to put up a brave front.

_"Watch me"_ was his answer. He raised his leg and brought it down on my side with such force _that I am sure my heart skipped a few beats and mind you not in a fun way_. I felt my ribs compress and snap. The sound felt deadly to my ears. I must have screamed because my dad let out a chuckle probably enjoying my pain. _"Let's go home and make it a family reunion I am sure your mother will be pleased to see me"_, I didn't know it was a threat or not. Fear overwhelmed me shaking me to the core.

_"Dad please, I just got lucky. I was going to school and saw Ethan I didn't know you were involved. Dad keep mom out of it. She has nothing to do with it. This is between you and me"_ I said hoping he would leave mom alone. Dad seems satisfied with my answer and settled on a smirk.

_"Now that wasn't so hard was it?"_, he said and turn his back on me. I thought he is gonna leave me alone but he turned sharply sending a kick to my face. _"Still that didn't excuse my duty to teach you a lesson_" I heard him say but was too disorient to do anything about it. I was sent into the world of agony. The hail of kicks and punches continues to fall over me. The sharp pain in my forehead increased ten folds and I soon drowned in the sea of nothingness.

GOTHAM CITY

GOTHAM DOCKS

Batman easily dealt with the thugs on the dock, stopping major shipment of weaponry for Black mask. After tying them up and informing cops, he casually left the crime scene and headed towards the Gotham slums having a special house in mind to visit. Call it paranoia but he wanted to make sure that the girl is okay. He was aware of their financial condition so, in case of my problem he wants to be there for her. The girl has kind of grown on him for the past few years. He remembers when he first met her. The 10 year old girl dressed in black with a black ski mask covering her face desperately trying to stop her father from killing the innocent man but wasn't gaining any success. When he intervenes he could feel her to be relieved. The fight between the Sportsmaster and him resulted in an escape of Sportsmaster with girl following pursuit right after him. But he was surprised to hear a faint thank you from her. She also intentionally left the file behind they were supposed to take from the victim right before she disappeared in the night. He remembered working whole night to find her secret ID and other information. He was glad to know that she wasn't a killer just involved in robberies time to time. He remembered making a silent promise to himself about saving the girl. He didn't need to work hard for it though because in the next meeting, she herself presented the idea of becoming a double agent. He wasn't very keen on the idea of a double agent but he found himself agreeing with her.

After that it kind of becomes a routine. They traded information more like Artemis providing him information time to time. Sometimes it was in the one of her arrows containing a hidden USB in its swollen tip. Sometimes it was in the form of papers or file they exchanged while trading fake blows with each other. They hardly talk to each other and when they do its mostly business but after sometime he found himself trusting her. An unspoken bond for the greater good with no condition applied proved to be the proof of her loyalty and she had yet to prove it to be a mistake.

When he formed the team, the idea of putting her on the team didn't cross his mind. But with everything going on recently, he found it quite plausible. With Roy determined to not to join the team. Her mother release from the prison and her openly defiance towards the shadows by putting on the heroic costume added in her plus points and now Bruce was totally looking forward to put her on the team. She deserves it. To be honest, he was kind of jealous of Oliver when he saw her choice in costume. He, Oliver and Dinah decided that they will talk to her Paula about her daughter night activities today and Bruce was looking forward to that. He wanted to make sure that she is okay to hear the news or not. So, he decided to stalk her for a while.

He pulled out his GPRS gadget and starts tracking down her mobile phone. The gadget shows her location to be in the alley near Gotham North. _What's she doing there at this time of night? She better not is patrolling with her injured shoulder, _Bruce thought_, This is also one of the main reason I wanted her to be on team. At least I don't have to worry about her wellbeing anymore with team around her. I would have to knock sense into her about patrolling with an injury._ He decided and took off to reach her before she changes her location. To his surprise his gadget indicated that she has been staying the same spot for last five minutes. Something inside Bruce warned him that he isn't going to like that. He increased his speed and reached the alley in no time. The sight awaited for him scares him. Artemis was lying motionless on the ground in the pool of her own blood and her left arm twisted at an odd angle. Bruce sprinted into action within seconds. He checked her pulse and was glad to find it's there. Weak but there. He quickly accessed her injuries and decided to take her to Bat Cave for further help.

STAR CITY  
OLIVER'S MANSION 

_She looks more excited than me. It's like she is the one having a new protégé, _Oliver thought amusingly. When he told Dinah about Artemis, he didn't expected Dinah to suddenly asking for letting her come with him. Why she asked to be a part of this was beyond him. _She probably is jealous_, the thought amuses him and he suppressed the urge to laugh, _I never understand women._ When Oliver tells Bruce about Dinah's request, he simply shrugged and said, _"Since you are not so eager about mentoring her, its better if Dinah take your place"._ They just love to gang up against me was Oliver's sole thought on this.

_"if you are done can we leave now", _Oliver asked just to annoy her, _"you know for someone who fights crime in pair of jeans you sure take a lot of time in putting them on. Want me to do that for you."_ He teased her.

_"Pervert ",_ Dinah shrieked from inside the room and he laughed at her response. Soon she came out all dressed in black canary outfit making his grin wider. Before he could say something inappropriate, she silenced him by saying, _"Shut your big mouth Ollie we are already late"._

They both went to the basement and typed in the bat cave code in the zeta tube and zeta beamed there. _Ah the perks of being the billionaire,_ Dinah thought.

GOTHAM CITY

BAT CAVE

_Damn I was excited to meet the girl. Oliver desperately needs a distraction to take his mind off the whole Roy situation. This girl could do that._ Dinah thought while making her way to the Bat Cave_, besides it would be great to have some female company. You can't have girl talk with Men._ She wasexpecting Bruce to be sophisticatedly waiting for them with a bat glare set upon his face but was surprised to find it empty.

_"Yes! Bats more late than us… this calls for a treat. We get to scold him. This is going to be fun"_, Oliver cried in joy with his fist pumping in the air. Dinah laughed at his childish act. But her laughter cut short when she saw Bruce entering with an unconscious girl with blood all over her. Both Oliver and Dinah darted towards Bruce and helped him gently placing the girl over the operating table. The amount of blood the girl was losing terrified Dinah.

Since Dinah was more expert in the medical training so both Bruce and Oliver let her take the charge. She swiftly starts doing the primary examination. The cut on the forehead, broken nose, dislocated shoulder, bullet wound with open stitches contributing to the most of the blood less, two broken ribs, several bruised ribs and possible chance of concussion and internal bleeding. She was interrupted by the sudden outburst of Oliver.

_"What happened to her Bruce? Damn she looks like she has been run over by a car", _Oliver looked desperate to help the girl, _"she is going to be okay. Right" _the last part was directed towards Dinah.

"_Bruce she needs blood transfusion_", Dinah asked ignoring the Oliver's question and focusing the task on the hand, _"I need the X-ray machine over here. She has a bullet wound in her shoulder. I need to make sure the bullet has been removed before stitching it up. Oliver come up here and help me with her dislocated shoulder"._

_"The bullet has been removed. Just stich it up already", _Oliver begged and held the girl while Dinah popped her shoulder back into the socket and starts bandaging it. Bruce disappeared from behind.

_"How do you know that? And what's with being an ass. I am trying to help here",_ Dinah asked and starts working on her ribs making sure that the girl doesn't have the internal bleeding.

_"Because we removed it. She is Artemis"_, Oliver supplied while holding her head still so Dinah can work on her broken nose. The realization hit Dinah making her stop working for a moment.

_"Oliver",_ she said soothingly, never stops working on her unconscious patient, _"She is going to be fine"._ Their gaze met for a moment and Dinah gave him a reassuring smile. Right on cue Bruce entered with the bag of blood and with other things like IV drips and injections.

After a tiring work of an hour, Dinah finally announced that she is fine and is only in need of proper rest. Bruce put her in one of the room of his mansion. Since Robin was going to spend the night with the team he didn't hesitate to bring the girl into the mansion. Besides he planned on moving Artemis back to her house before she wakes up. After that all three found the comfortable couch in Bruce's TV longue with the cup of black coffee. Dinah slumped on couch with Oliver._ "Any idea what happened to her?",_ it was Dinah who asked the question voicing the thoughts of both Oliver and Dinah and like always it was Batman who provided the answer.

_"Lawrence, her father, happened. I collected the surveillance videos of the shops located right before the alley. Facial ID software picks Lawrence. He must have ambushed her in the alley",_ Batman provided mechanically.

_"But why?" _Oliver asked in higher tone obviously not happy of the thought of some father doing something like that to his own daughter.

_"I haven't figured it out yet. Let's hope when she awakes she provides us with some more answers",_ Batman said. Oliver got frustrated for a while and then suddenly smiled.

_"So Bruce were you stalking my protégé?"_ Oliver asked mischievously and Bruce just let loose a growl, _"and they say you don't have a heart"._

GOTHAM CITY

PAULA'S HOUSE

Artemis awakes with a gasp. First she just felt numb. Then all of a sudden, the burning pain overwhelmed her. Her chest felt like it is being weighed down by bricks. Every breath was sending a wave of agony in her body. Her vision was blurry and there was slight ringing in her ears. Artemis decided to lie down and wait for her senses to adjust.

The sudden movement around her catches her attention and she abruptly tries to sit up. Suddenly a hand pusher her down with a little force and kept her static. The ringing in her ear subsides and she could hear a voice telling her to stay calm. Since Artemis sees no harm in it so she decides to obey it.

After few seconds of more rest, Artemis vision became clear. Only one look to her surroundings confirms her that she was in her room. The thought of someone in her room sends a wave of panic in her. Before she could turn around, the person comes in her view probably for her convenience. She was revealed to see it was Batman. Her encounter with her Dad comes to her mind and she groaned in annoyance.

_Yayy I am again saved by him. Some hero I am can't even survive without someone's help, _Artemis thought.

_"How are you feeling?", _batman asked.

_"Like I have been beaten to death",_ she states a fact and again met his eyes, _"So how bad is it?" _

_"Broken arm, two broken ribs, broken nose and concussion. Lucky for you no internal bleeding"_ bats told her mechanically, _"There are pain killers and your medicine in your bag pack. Take them regularly. You also need rest for three to four days. So, try to stay away from trouble"_.

_"Okay nanny. Anything else you want to tell me, go ahead, I am all ears"_ Artemis said annoyed. It wasn't that she was ungrateful. She just didn't wants to be the charity case.

Bruce sensed her frustration and internally smiled_. She needs to loosen up but hey who Am I to complain?,_ Bruce thought. Artemis likes to do things on her own so of course she was taking his help as a blow to her ego. Bruce decides to go for the question that was bugging him. _"Any idea why Sportsmaster pays you a visit?"_

_"I ruined his plans yesterday so, he decided to teach me a lesson" _she supplied. When she got no response from bats she knew she needs to elaborate, _"The land on which orphanage opened here in slums has the set of tunnels beneath it that has been used by triaid as their meeting spot. The orphanage was bringing too much attention to that place. They paid my dad to ruin the show. The assassins arrested there were working for my father. It's safe to assume that he was truly happy with my interference and decided to show me how proud he is of my actions"._

Batman nodded in understanding. Relief washed over him as he concluded that Oliver wasn't the target and is no longer in danger. He made a note of paying visit to the tunnels. _"You are not allowed to patrol anymore"_, he said with a tone of authority. He wanted to test her dedication. He was sure that she would never back down but still he wanted to know her limits. He was going to put her on team after all. _"From this moment on, you will not doing anything stupid on your account. Leave it to me to take care of Gotham?"_. He also wanted to test her that if her leader will imposing a wrong decision will she step up to that.

_"What?"_ She shrieked. This took Artemis by surprise. In an instant, she was trying to stand just to be face to face with him. Bruce felt bad for pushing her buttons in her injured state. _"You can't tell me what to do. I will do whatever I want"_, she huffed and folded her hands or tried to fold her hands since her one hand was in a sling so it was rather difficult for her to do that.

_"You will listen to me. Gotham is my city and I decide things here. The next time I catch you wandering in streets I will put you in juvenile prison myself",_ Bruce try to intimidate her and sensed her getting stiff beside him.

The mention of prison rattled her. It was her phobia. Visiting her mom while she was imprisoned in the Belle Rev never brought back good memories. She refused to let her fear win and settled on anger. It's the only defense she got. _"Well news flash Mr. Dark and gloomy, Gotham is my city too", _Artemis matched his glare and tried to poke him on the chest with her injured hand, _"You don't hold any right over me so don't_ _tell me what to do and if you still think you can intimidate me. You are wrong dude. In case you forgot, I have a very loud mouthed person as my dad. So please this shit doesn't work with me. Back off"_

_She would make a very good addition to the league,_ Bruce thought. _"Good you passed the test"_, Bruce said and swiftly made his exit through the window leaving a very confused and fuming archer behind.


End file.
